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The “Child Dignity in the Digital World” Congress starts in one week! Our focus today is on international organizations whose representatives will be speaking at the event. Joining us from the UN and UNICEF are: Dr. Susan Bissell, Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, Jasmina Byrne, Prof. Benyam Dawit Mezmur, and Cornelius Williams.

In this post, we want to share a brief biography of Ms. Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, who is also a member of the steering committee of the Congress. From the Netherlands, she has promoted children’s rights throughout her entire professional career. She was Deputy Registrar to the European Court of Human Rights, and served the European Commission of Human Rights in various capacities. While serving as Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe from 2002-2012, she strengthened efforts to protect vulnerable children and advocated for child-friendly policies. Ms. Maud de Boer-Buquicchio is is currently the UN Special Rapporteur on the sale and sexual exploitation of children as well as President of the European Federation for Missing and Exploited Children (MCE).

On the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, she reminded the UN’s General Assembly that, while progress has been made, many children are still at risk, also threatened by online crime. The video is here. She reflects, “Is the world a better place for children [since the adoption of the convention]? It depends. [ … ] I have no doubt that, if respected and implemented, the principles and rights enshrined in the convention would completely change the trend of this plight, benefitting the children who were left behind”.